The first rocket missiles were used by the Chinese in the 13th century (see
Chinese fire-arrows), but the
ancestor of the modern missile were the German V-1
and V-2 rockets used to bombard London in World
War II. The V-2 could reach 5,600 km/h and there was no defense against
it. Captured V-2s gave Russia and the United States (see Operation
Paperclip) the starting point for further rocket
development culminating in intercontinental missiles capable of delivering
nuclear warheads to any point on the globe – and also of launching
mankind into space.

Missiles can be classified according to their range, by the way they approach
their target (guided, unguided, or ballistic), by their use (surface-to-surface,
surface-to-air, and so on), or by their target (as with antitank missiles).
The Minuteman, for instance, is an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM),
with a range of more than 11,000 km and a ballistic arc trajectory, like
a shell fired from a gun.

Missiles are normally propelled by solid-fueled rockets equipped with an
oxidizer that allows the fuel
to burn outside the atmosphere. Liquid propellants are more volatile and
not generally used. Larger missiles, such as the Minuteman, comprise several
stages, generally mounted on one another, each with its own motor. This
arrangement gives the missile increased speed, range, and lifting capacity
and so is generally also used in spacecraft-launching missiles such as Atlas
or Saturn. A few missiles, such as
the Hound Dog air-to-surface missile carried by the B-52 bomber, are powered
by jets, while Britain's Bloodhound is driven by a ramjet

Guidance systems vary from wire guidance for short-range missiles to elaborate
homing systems which eliminate almost all possibility of escape.Some short-range
missiles such as Honest John need no guidance at all, while those equipped
with nuclear warheads cause such widespread destruction that pinpoint accuracy
is not required. Wire guidance allows the operator to control the course
of the missile through two fine wires paid out behind it. Other more complex
systems use a radio beam directed at the target, or a radar or laser-fed
computer tracking and correcting the missile's course. Homing systems involve
devices which detect waves emitted by or reflected from the target. Some
home on heat in the form of infrared rays; others use radar. Many can be
jammed electronically, but some are preset with a complete flight plan to
guide the missile to a selected target, and to correct any deviation from
course. Most long-range missiles have an inertial
guidance system to detect changes in course and velocity.

Missile launchers range from the simple tube of the bazooka to the massive
self-propelled mobile launcher/transporter used for Honest John. Larger
missiles such as ICBMs require so much elaborate support equipment that
they must be stored in heavily defended underground silos. Nuclear-powered
missile submarines are more difficult to detect and destroy. Aircraft-launched
missiles usually have a guidance system enabling the aircraft to remain
a considerable distance from the target. The expense and risks involved
in the uncontrolled development of nuclear missiles and antimissile systems
led to Strategic Arms Limitations Talks (SALT) between the United States
and Russia.